Finding Aid for the Exhibit collection of Near Eastern manuscripts, 1492-1848

Manuscripts

Box 1

Manuscript no. 1 Kanz al-lughāt / Treasure of words 1658

Physical Description: 375 leaves : paper, ill. ; 212 × 120 (167 × 77) mm. bound to 217 × 124 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Persian dictionary of Koranic Arabic and Hadith terms. The author praises Sulṭan Muḥammad and his heir (2a) and calls them "The adornment of the Hall of the Musṭafawī lineage, and the decoration of the pride of the Murtaḍawī family," implying a Sayyid king, possibly Ṣafawid. If so, the named Sulṭan would be Sulṭan Muḥammad Khudābandah father of Shāh Άbbās, and the date of composition would fall between 1577-1586 CE.

Author: Muḥammad ibn Άbd al-Khāliq ibn Ma 'arīf, fl. 16th cent?
Scribe: Ibn Abī Turāb Muḥammad Ibrāhīm (al-Ḥusayn?)
Language: Text in Persian and Arabic
Origin: Ṣafawid Persia
Layout: Average of 21 lines of text per page.
Script: Written in fine nastẚ līq hand.
Decoration: Illuminated title page.
Binding: Decorated red leather binding. Covers painted with portraits of youths; inside covers painted with partridges.
Additional description: Arabic terms and phrases in red. Marginalia. Occasional bleeding of red ink, particularly in the last third of the text; light brown staining and black ink stains on a number of leaves. Misspelled fore-edge title; spine title.
Contents:
- ff. 1b-3a: Preface;
- ff. 3a-4b: Table of contents;
- ff. 4b-375a: Twenty eight chapters according to the letters of the alphabet (alif to yā).

Box 1

Manuscript no. 2 Kalīlah va Dimnah / Kalīlah and Dimnah 1787

Physical Description: 262 leaves : paper, ill. ; 211 × 148 mm. bound to 211 × 148 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Belles-lettres, also known as Kalīlah va Dimnah, yā, Anvār-i Suhaylī (Kalīlah and Dimnah, or, Lights of Canopus). Kāshifī gives the history of the fables from the "Indian" version of Bīdpāy (3a), to Burzīyah's Pahlavi (3a), Ibn al-Muqannẚ [sic] in Arabic (3b), Rīdakī's Persian in verse (3b), and the prose Persian version of Bahrām Shāh Ghaznawid (3b). Kāshifī states (4a) that the book was in danger of not being read on account of the difficulties in the language of the Bahrām Shāh version, which he (Kāshifī) has now undertaken to make more accessible to his contemporaries (4a-5b). This was suggested to him by (4b) Amīr Shaykh Aḥmad, known as al-Suhaylī (d. 1501-3 CE), hence the second title of the book and the pun on Suhayl, or the star Canopus. The work was done at the time of the Timurid Sultan Ḥusayn Bayqara (4b), who reigned in Heart until 1506 CE.

Author: Kāshifī, Ḥusayn Vā ᾽iẓ, d. 1504 or 5
Language: Text in Persian
Origin: Persia
Layout: Average of 21 lines of text per page.
Decoration: Illuminated title page.
Binding: Black laquered book cover with floral ornamentation.
Additional description: Punctuation and introductory words in red ink. Marginalia in two hands: one hand resembles the scribe's, the other seems to have been involved in the production of the book (i.e. on leaf 227a, the second hand has extended the gilt text box to accommodate notes). Leaves 3 and 4 are detached, and 88 is missing. The copier has dated the finishing of some of the chapters.
Contents:
- ff. 1b-6a: Kāshifī's preface;
- ff. 6a-29b: Introduction;
- ff. 29b-78b: Chapter one: on avoiding to listen to the words of a slanderer and calumniator;
- ff. 78b-104a : Chapter two: on evil-doers finding their recompense and the inauspiciousness of their end;
- ff. 104a-126b: Chapter three: on the benefits of being in harmony with friends and supporting them;
- ff. 126b-157a: Chapter four: on keeping an eye on enemies and not feeling secure;
- ff. 157a-169b: Chapter five: on the harmfulness of negligence and losing what is sought;
- ff. 169b-175a: Chapter six: on the curse of haste and the harm of precipitancy;
- ff. 175a-185a: Chapter seven: on prudence and discretion and finding deliverance from the snare of adversaries by ruses;
- ff. 185a-194a: Chapter eight: on being on one's guard against men of malice and not relying upon their flattery;
- ff. 194a-210a: Chapter nine: on the merit of forgiveness and discretion which are the best adjuncts to kings;
- ff. 210a-216b: Chapter ten: on the recompense of deeds in the manner of punishments;
- ff. 216b-223b: Chapter eleven: on the harmfulness of desiring too much at the expense of doing one's task;
- ff. 223b-240a: Chapter twelve: on the merit of self-possession and dignity and being settled and staid, particularly for kings;
- ff. 240a-250a: Chapter thirteen: on avoiding the words of men of treachery and treason;
- ff. 250a-262a: Chapter twelve: on not regarding the fluctuations of time and basing One's affairs on fate and divine decree.

Box 1

Manuscript no. 3 Yīsuf va Zulaykhā / Yusuf and Zulaikha 1511

Physical Description: 152 leaves : paper ; 222 × 120 mm. bound to 206 × 123 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Belles-lettres. Jāmī's allegorical romance, in verse (completed 1483 CE).

Author: Jāmī, 1414-1492
Scribe: Άlā al-Dīn Muḥammad al-Haravī
Language: Text in Persian
Origin: Timurid Herat
Layout: Average of 14 lines of text in two columns per page.
Script: Written in a nastaẚ līq hand.
Decoration: Illumination on title page.
Binding: Black leather binding with stamped gilt leather decoration; painted red endpapers.
Additional description: Verses enclosed in gold and blue text box. Episode headings generally one to three lines; first line blue, second line gold, and third line red. Pagination in ink on upper corners.
Contents:
- ff. 1b-18a: Opening verses;
- ff. 18a-19a : The story of the lighting of the candle of Yīsuf's beauty in the otherworldly night-chamber and the burning of Adam's heart upon witnessing that light;
- ff. 19a-21b: How the sapling of Yīsuf's beauty was brought into the Garden of Testimony, and how it was nourished by the tears of Jacob's eyes and the desires of Zulaykha's heart;
- ff. 21b-24b: On the qualities and attributes of Zulaykha, from the sunrise of whose beauty, the occident had become the orient, but even a thousand degrees more so;
- ff. 24b-26a: On how Zulaykha saw in the scabbard of sleep the sword of Yīsuf's beauty for the first time, and how she was love-slain by that sword in the scabbard;
- ff. 26a-27b : On how the morning breeze blew upon Zulaykha and awakened her sleepy narcissus eyes, and on how she drank the blood of her heart like a blossom and sealed her lips from the nightly vision;
- ff. 27b-30b: On how the string of the intellect of maidens was tied into a knot of astonishment when they witnessed the change in Zulaykha's condition, and how her nurse untied that knot by the fingertips of interrogation;
- ff. 30b-33b: How Zulaykha saw Yīsuf in a dream a second time, and how the chains of her love quavered, dragging her into the embroilment of madness;
- ff. 33b-35b: On how Yīsuf came to her dream a third time, and how she learned his name and status, returning to sanity and consciousness;
- ff. 35b-37b: How the envoys of the monarchs of those parts other than Egypt came to ask for Zulaykha's hand, and how her heart was constricted from her resulting despair;
- ff. 37b-39b: How Zulaykha's father sent a messenger to the Άzīz of Egypt, offering her to him, and how he accepted it;
- ff. 39b-41b: How the breeze of acceptance blew from Egypt, and how Zulaykha's litter was conveyed to Egypt like a bouquet of flowers;
- ff. 41b-43a: How the Άzīz of Egypt found out that Zulaykha had arrived, and how he rose to set out for her welcoming, and how he adorned the army of Egypt in rich array;
- ff. 43a-45a: How Zulaykha saw the Άzīz of Egypt from an opening in the pavilion-tent and cried "He is not the one I have seen in my dream, and for whom I have suffered the tribulations of love";
- ff. 45a-47a: How Zulaykha came into Egypt along with the Άzīz of Egypt, and how the Egyptians came out and sprinkled trayfuls of offerings upon Zulaykha's litter;
- ff. 47a-50a: How Zulaykha spent her days in the absence of Yīsuf, and how she pined and grieved during the passing of those mornings and nights;
- ff. 50a-51a: The beginning of the brothers' jealousy, and how they cast Yīsuf out of Canaan;
- ff. 51a-52b: How Yīsuf dreamed that the sun and the moon and twelve stars were bowing down to him, and how the brothers heard this, and how their jealousy was increased;
- ff. 52b-53b: How the brothers held council with one another to see what ruse they might devise to separate Yīsuf from their father;
- ff. 53b-54b: How the brothers went to their father and asked him to take Yīsuf into the wilderness with them;
- ff. 54b-57a: How the brothers took Yīsuf away from their father, and how they dug a well of darkness in the path of their own guidance, throwing him who was guiltless into the well;
- ff. 57a-59a: How the caravan arrived at the well, and how they took Yīsuf out of the well, illuminating the world once again by the light of his beauty;
- ff. 59a-60a: How the proprietor brought Yīsuf to the environs of Egypt, and how the king found out about it and sent the Άzīz to their welcoming;
- ff. 60a-61b: How Yīsuf got into the river Nile to wash himself of the dust of the road, and how he sat in a litter intending for the court of the king of Egypt;
- ff. 61b-63a: How Zulaykha, arriving at court and asking the reason for the congestion, saw Yīsuf's beauty and recognized him;
- ff. 63a-65a: How the proprietor presented Yīsuf for sale, and how Zulaykha bought him by doubling what the others were buying him for;
- ff. 65a-68a: The story of a girl named Bazigha, a descendant of the ᾽īd, who was like none other in her wealth and beauty, and who fell in love with Yīsuf absently, and saw the Truth in that mirror of beauty, and reached the Truth via that path;
- ff. 68a-70a: How Zulaykha instructed Yīsuf, and how she served him with whatever was at hand;
- ff. 70a-71b: How Yīsuf described the tribulations of the road and the agonies of the well, and how Zulaykha realized that this was the cause for his sadness that day;
- ff. 71b-72b: How Yīsuf besought a shepherd, on account of the fact that there has never been a prophet who did not herd livestock, and how Zulaykha prepared the means of his shepherding;
- ff. 72b-74a: How Zulaykha asked Yīsuf for attainment, and how Yīsuf fled from her;
- ff. 74a-75b: How the nurse asked Zulaykha the cause of her burning and smoldering;
- ff. 75b-77a: How Zulaykha sent the nurse to Yīsuf to ask for her wish, and …[text faded];
- ff. 77a-79b: How Zulaykha went herself to Yīsuf and implored, and how Yīsuf excused himself from satisfying her desire;
- ff. 79b-81b: How Zulaykha sent Yīsuf to the garden and how she set him up;
- ff. 81b-83b: How evening fell, and how the maidens presented their beauties to Yīsuf, to see unto which one of them would Yīsuf be inclined;
- ff. 83b-85a: How Zulaykha implored her nurse for a ruse that would bring about the attainment of Yīsuf;
- ff. 85a-86b: How the nurse built a house in which the pictures of Yīsuf and Zulaykha were painted;
- ff. 86b-90a: How Zulaykha summoned Yīsuf into that house and asked for attainment;
- ff. 90a-95a: How Zulaykha brought Yīsuf into the seventh house, and how she set forth her endeavor into the Nile of desire, and how Yīsuf ran away and left her rueful and pining;
- ff. 95a-97b: How the Άzīz of Egypt came up to Yīsuf in front of that house, and how [Yīsuf] hid what had past between him and Zulaykha, and how Zulaykha divulged it;
- ff. 97b-99a: How the captains dragged Yīsuf to prison, and how a nursling infant testified to his innocence, and how he was left alone;
- ff. 99a-103a: How the women of Egypt removed their hands from the mouths, and began upbraiding Zulaykha, and how the sword of the zeal of love cut their tongues and hands;
- ff. 103a-105b: How the women of Egypt excused Zulaykha after they had witnessed Yīsuf's beauty, and how Yīsuf disdained submission to Zulaykha, and how she threatened him with imprisonment;
- ff. 105b-108a: How the women of Egypt induced Zulaykha to send Yīsuf to prison, and how Zulaykha obeyed them;
- ff. 108a-111a: How Zulaykha regretted having sent Yīsuf to prison, and how she began to weep and wail for his absence;
- ff. 111a-113b: How Zulaykha grew impatient at Yīsuf's absence, and how she went to prison at night along with the nurse and witnessed his beauty;
- ff. 113b-115b: How in daytime Zulaykha went to the rooftop of her palace, and watched the rooftop of the prison from there, and how she began weeping and moaning over his absence;
- ff. 115b-117a: The description of how Yīsuf did good to the men in jail, and how he interpreted the dream of the confidants of the king of Egypt, and how he charged one of them to recall him to the king;
- ff. 117a-120a: How the king of Egypt requested Yīsuf for the interpreting of his dream, and how he pleaded that he investigate into what had passed between him and the women of Egypt;
- ff. 120a-122a: How Yīsuf came out of prison, and how the king honored him, and how the Άzīz of Egypt passed away, and how Zulaykha was stricken with loneliness and separation;
- ff. 122a-125a: The description of Zulaykha's condition after the death of the Άzīz of Egypt, and how the love of Yīsuf overpowered her, and how she was stricken with the tribulation of estrangement;
- ff. 125a-127a: How Zulaykha came to Yīsuf's way and built a hovel so she might find solace at the sound of the passing of his army;
- ff. 127a-129a: How Zulaykha blocked Yīsuf's way, and how she did not find favor, and how afterwards she went home, broke the idol, believed in God most high, went back to his way, and found favor;
- ff. 129a-131b: How Zulaykha came to the private house of Yīsuf, and how, by his prayers, she regained her sight, beauty, and youth;
- ff. 131b-133b: How Yīsuf took Zulaykha as wife by the order of God most high, and how he took her to the marriage bed;
- ff. 133b-135b: How the love for Zulaykha overpowered Yīsuf, and how he built a house of worship for her;
- ff. 135b-137a: How Yīsuf saw his mother and father in a dream, and how he asked God most high to pass away, and how Zulaykha panicked;
- ff. 137a-142a: How Yīsuf passed away, and how Zulaykha died from the pain of his separation;
- ff. 142a-152a: closing material.

Box 1

Manuscript no. 4 Maṭlẚ-i sẚdayn va majmẚ -i baḥrayn / The rising of the auspicious [lunar] mansions, and the gathering of the seas 1492

Physical Description: 430 leaves : paper, ill. ; 251 × 163 mm. bound to 253 × 167 mm.

Scope and Content Note

History. This is the second volume of Samarqandī's history of the Ilkhanid Mongols, Tamerlane, and the Timurids. Volume two covers the sons of Tamerlane up to ca. 1469 CE; also including the enthronement of Sulṭan Ḥusayn Bayqara, ca. 1470 CE. While the first volume of this book borrowed from several other histories, the second volume reported the events that were contemporary, or near contemporary, with the author. The focus is mostly on events in Khurāsān and Transoxiana, with due attention given to events in Iraq and Azerbayjan. The reign of the following Timurid Emirs are covered with varying degree of detail: Pīr Muḥammad, Rustam, Khalīl Sulṭān, ᾿Umar Shaykh, Shāh Rukh, Ulugh Beg, Άbd al-Laṭīf, Άbd Allāh, Abī Sẚ īd, Sulṭān Aḥmad, Maḥmīd, and Ḥusayn Bayqara. The book also contains the report of the author's travels to India as an ambassador and his account of the strange things that he had seen there. The author refers to himself and his date of composition in a number of other instances, for example 58a (at the end of the section on Shāhrukh's school and hospice built in Heart ca. 1410), or when he mentions his interview with Shāhrukh ca. 1437 (192b).

Author: Άbd al-Razzāq Kamāl al-Dīn ibn Isḥāq al-Samarqandī, 1413-1482
Scribe: Άbd al-Mī'min ibn Maqṣīd Άlī al-Mu᾿allim
Language: Text in Persian
Origin: [Northeast Persia or Afghanistan?]
Layout: Average of 21 lines of text per page.
Decoration: Illuminated title page.
Binding: Red leather binding with gilt stamping.
Additional description: Chapter headings, Koranic verses, and the words "verse" or "poem" in red ink. Each leaf has been numbered on the "b" side, in the right margin. Occasional streaking of ink, and ink-stained fingerprints. Possible water damage at tail.
Contents:
- ff. 1a-3b: Opening;
- ff. 3b-11b: The enthronement of Shah Rukh Mīrza;
- ff. 11b-31a: Events of 808-809 AH;
- ff. 31a-100a: Events of 810-819 AH;
- ff. 100a-156b: Events of 820-829 AH;
- ff. 156b-188b: Events of 830-849 AH;
- ff. 188b-235a: Events of 840-849 AH;
- ff. 235a-314a: Events of 850-859 AH;
- ff. 314a-387b: Events of 860-869 AH;
- ff. 387b-430a: Events of 870-874 AH.

Box 1

Manuscript no. 5 Tarassul / Letter writing 1604

Physical Description: 67 leaves : paper ; 215 × 135 mm. bound to 217 × 140 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Correspondence manual. This is a handbook of official correspondence, meant for secretaries, providing samples of letters to various government functionaries or potentates according to rank or the occasion. These include not only letters addressed to Sultans (3b), letters to Sultans on occasion of victories (4b), letters addressed to supreme Emirs (9b), viziers (11b), judges (16b), etc.; but also how to answer such letters.

Author: Manṣīr ibn Muḥammad ibn Άlī al-Qazvīnī
Language: Text in Persian
Origin: [Ṣafawid Persia?]
Layout: Average of 8 lines of text per page.
Script: Divani.
Binding: Black leather binding with blind stamping.
Additional description: Blue paper with ivory and pink paper inlays. Headings and some punctuation in red ink. Pagination in Arabic numerals stamped on top right and left hand of facing pages. Fore-edge title.
Contents:
- ff. 1a-1b: Blank;
- ff. 2a: Date;
- ff. 2b-3b: Opening;
- ff. 3b-66b: Sample letters;
- ff. 67a-67b: Blank.

Box 1

Manuscript no. 6 Asās al-iqtibās / The foundations of learning n.d.

Physical Description: 276 leaves : paper ; 181 × 120 mm. bound to 184 × 120 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Philosophy and logic. The division of the manuscript follows Aristotle's six-part "Logic," with the two appended books of "Rhetoric" and "Poetics," plus the additions of Porphyry of Tyre. Incomplete; page 1a begins in the middle of a sentence, and the critical edition of the text, ed. Mudarris Raẓawī (Tehran, 1976) shows this as the fourth line of the introduction.

Author: Ṭusī, Naṣīr al-Dīn Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad, 1201-1274
Language: Text in Persian
Layout: Average of 19 lines of text per page.
Script: Nastẚ līq.
Binding: Burgundy leather binding with blind stamped leather inlays. Front cover has been replaced with blue cloth over a wooden board.
Additional description: Chapter headings in red ink. Fairly extensive marginalia. Tables and charts (leaves 57-58). Spine title: Asas al-eqbas.
Contents:
- ff. 1a-2a: Preface;
- ff. 2a-13b: The First discourse: introduction to logic or Isagoge;
- ff. 13b-24a: The Second discourse: on the ten classifications. It is called Categories;
- ff. 24a-74a: The Third discourse: on interpretation. The target of these subjects is definitive statements. It is called Hermeneutics;
- ff. 74a-147a: The Fourth discourse: on the science of analogies. It is called Prior Analytics;
- ff. 147a-196a: The Fifth discourse: on proof. It is called Posterior Analytics;
- ff. 196a-233b: The Sixth discourse: on argumentation. It is called Topics;
- ff. 233b-240b: The Seventh discourse: on fallacies. It is called Sophistry;
- ff. 240b-269a: The Eighth discourse: on oratory. It is called Rhetoric;
- ff. 269a-276a: The Ninth discourse: on poetry. It is called Poetics.

Box 2

Manuscript no. 7 Tuḥfat al-mulīk / The kings' gift 1822

Physical Description: 201 leaves : paper, ill. ; 288 × 191 mm. bound to 292 × 200 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Philosophy and belles-lettres. Political treatise written during the reign of Fatḥ Άlī Shāh Qājār at his request and that of the crown prince Muḥammad Ṭaqī Mīrzā. The illustrations depict the circles of reason (often represented by the color of gold), and the circles of ignorance (often represented by black) to which people might ascend or descend.

Author: Kashfī, Ja ῾far ibn Abī Isḥāq, d. 1850 or 51
Scribe: Qāsim ibn Muḥammad al-Naṣrābādī
Language: Text in Persian and Arabic
Origin: Qajar Persia
Layout: Average of 29 lines of text per page.
Decoration: Several large cosmological illustrations.
Binding: Lacquered painted boards; outside covers show a floral medallion on a black background, bordered in gold; inside covers show a yellow flowering plant on an orange background.
Additional description: Chapter and section headings in red ink. The leaves are frayed and have been poorly taped. Charts and illustrations throughout. Interlinear Persian and Arabic text from ff. 194- 198.
Contents:
- ff. 1b-2b: Preface;
- ff. 2b-18a: The first stratum: on the truth of reason;
- ff. 18a-75b: The second stratum: on the quality of relationship, and its belonging to living beings, and all that belongs to it;
- ff. 75b-137b: The third stratum: on the attributes and the signs and vestiges thereof, and that which belongs to them;
- ff. 137b-187a: The closing: on one bit of the authority of reason which belongs to managing the populace; first part;
- ff. 187a-201a: Second part.

Box 2

Manuscript no. 8 Dīvān-i Ḥāfiẓ / Poems of Ḥāfiẓ 1831

Physical Description: 74 leaves : paper, ill. ; 346 × 215 mm. bound to 349 × 220 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Belles-lettres. The anthology of the lyrics and poems of Ḥāfiẓ.

Author: Ḥāfiẓ, 14th cent.
Scribe: Άlī Ashraf Khān
Language: Text in Persian
Origin: Qajar Persia
Layout: Average of 25 lines of text per page; some pages have 4 columns.
Script: Nastẚ līq.
Decoration: Leaves 1b and 6a are illuminated.
Binding: Lacquered painted boards with gold floral and bird ornamentation on a black background, framed in gold, red, and black borders. Inside covers depict a perched bird in gold on a red background, framed in gold and black borders.
Additional description: Ornate title page illumination. Poems generally in black ink. Quatrains towards the end of the text are designated with red ink headings. Some staining.
Contents:
- ff. 1b-3a: Prose introduction;
- ff. 3b-6a: Opening verses;
- ff. 6a-73b: Poems.

Box 2

Manuscript no. 10 Qurʼān / Koran n.d.

Physical Description: 7 leaves : paper, ill ; 218 × 147 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Fragment containing parts or all of four short chapters 84 to 87, including: verses 16 to 25 of al-inshiqāq (The sundering), all of al-Burīj (The mansions of the stars), all of al-Ṭāriq (The morning star), and verses 1 through 14 and the first two words of verse 15 from al-A᾿ alá (The most high).

Language: Text in Arabic
Layout: Average of 11 lines of text per page.
Decoration: Illuminated.
Additional description: One quire. Text in black ink, with every first, fifth, and eleventh line in larger script.

Box 2

Manuscript no. 11 Tuḥfat al-zā Ἰr / The pilgrim's gift 1830

Physical Description: 304 leaves : paper, ill. ; 229 × 141 mm. bound to 231 × 144 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Religion. Majlisīʼs Ṣafawid-period treatise on pilgrimage, with a guide for reading one's fortune using the manuscript written on the very last leaf (304b). The author states that he wrote the book in Persian because most people could not read the Arabic books written on this topic.

Author: Majlisī, Muḥammad Bāqir ibn Muḥammad Taqī, 1627 or 8-ca. 1699
Language: Text in Persian and Arabic
Origin: Qajar Persia
Layout: Average of 21 lines of text per page.
Decoration: Illuminated title page.
Binding: Lacquered painted boards with decorative floral ornamentation.
Additional description: Text in black ink with gilt ruling; chapter headings in red and framed in gold. Occasional spelling errors and marginalia. Water damage. Paper fragments laid in provide bibliographical information about two other manuscripts, one them is in the present collection (ms. 25).
Contents:
- ff. 1b-2b: Opening;
- ff. 2b-10a: Introduction;
- ff. 10a-18b: Chapter one: the merits of repairing the holy tombs of the Prophet and the Imams, the merits of making pilgrimage to them, and the manner of making pilgrimage to them;
- ff. 18b-36b: Chapter two: on the merit [?] and quality of making pilgrimage to the Apostle of God, Faṭima Zahrá, and the Imams;
- ff. 36b-77b: Chapter three: on the merit of making pilgrimage to [Άlī] and the quality of making pilgrimage to him;
- ff. 77b-93a: Chapter four: on the merit of the noble Najaf, Kīfa, the mosques of Kīfa, and the waters of Euphrates;
- ff. 93a-118b: Chapter five: on the merit of making pilgrimage to the Lord of the Martyrs, Ḥusayn ibn Άlī;
- ff. 118b-133a: Chapter six: on the merit of the glorious burial place and Karbala, and the merit of the tomb of Imam Ḥusayn, and the manner thereof;
- ff. 133a-187b: Chapter seven: on the separated pilgrimages of his highness, which are not special to particular times, and the manners thereof, and other acts and prayers which must be done in the holy mausoleum;
- ff. 187b-221a: Chapter eight: on the merit and quality of making pilgrimage to his highness which is special to known times and days;
- ff. 221a-239b: Chapter nine: on the merit and quality of making pilgrimage to their highnesses Imām Mīsá Kaẓim, Imām Riḍā, and Imām Muḥammad Taqī;
- ff. 239b-257b: Chapter ten: on the merit and quality of making pilgrimage to their highnesses Imam Άlī Naqī, Imam Ḥasan Άskarī, and the Lord of the Event;
- ff. 257b-296a: Chapter eleven: on visiting the mosque where every Imam can be visited there;
- ff. 296a-304a: Chapter twelve: on the manners of making the pilgrimage on another's behalf, and the manners of making the pilgrimage to the ofsprings of the Imams;
- ff. 304a: Closing.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 12 Al-daftar al-tāsἳ min al-dafātir al-marsīma bi al-Sulaymāniyya / The ninth book of the books styled al-Sulaymāniyya 1593

Physical Description: 81 leaves : paper ; 250 × 141 mm. bound to 250 × 145 mm.

Scope and Content Note

This manuscript is the ninth part of Kemalpaşazade's Histories of the Ottoman House, entitled TevârîϦ-I Âl-I O smân. The text describes the end of Bayezid II and the beginnings of Selim's reign.

Author: Kemalpasazade, 1468 or 9-1534
Scribe: Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad al-Wāqi᾿ [al-Wāfi”?]
Language: Text in Ottoman Turkish
Origin: Ottoman Empire
Layout: Average of 17 lines of text per page.
Binding: Quarter leather binding with decorative purple wrappers over stiff paper boards.
Additional description: Text boxes, chapter headings, punctuation marks, and words introducing poetry in red ink. Leaf 59b entirely in red ink; leaves 72 and 79 are blue. Some spelling errors and marginalia.
Contents:
- ff. 1b-2b: Brief opening;
- ff. 2b-3b: Death of Bayezid, Selim mourns;
- ff. 3b-6a: Selim ascends the throne, Ahmed rebels;
- ff. 6a-8a: Selim deals with brothers and nephews;
- ff. 8a-10a: Ahmed returns from Arab provinces, defeated outside Yenisehir;
- ff. 10a-11a: Süleyman appointed Emir;
- ff. 11a-18a: Kizilbas (Qizilbash) movement in Azerbayjan;
- ff. 18a-18b: The army gathers, ready to set out;
- ff. 18b-22a: Selim sets out, holds court in the field;
- ff. 22a-24b: Correspondence with Shah Ismaʼīl leads to war. Selim marches to Çaldiran;
- ff. 24b-29a: Battle of Çaldiran, Selim victorious;
- ff. 29a-30b: Victory-letters dispatched about;
- ff. 30b-32b: Selim enters Tabrīz;
- ff. 32b-36b: Selim leaves Tabrīz for Rīm;
- ff. 36b-39b: Invasion of the isle of Rhodes;
- ff. 39b-42b: Marine "gaza" from Gallipoli;
- ff. 42b-49b: Selim sets out on victorious journey and raises imperial standards;
- ff. 49b-51a: Crossing into Rhodes, intending "gaza";
- ff. 51a-53b: Orders battle, councilors and commanders plot the taking of fortifications;
- ff. 53b-57b: Ruler of Egypt joins the "gaza";
- ff. 57b-62a: Instruction on the capture of enemy, battle;
- ff. 62a-65a: Ruler of Egypt dies;
- ff. 65a-67b: Ottoman forces lay siege to the fortress;
- ff. 67b-69a: What was taking place in surrounding kingdoms while the siege continued;
- ff. 69a-72a: Assault on the fortress;
- ff. 72a-77a: Residents of the fortress sue for peace;
- ff. 77a-79b: Rhodes fortress taken;
- ff. 79b-81a: Triumphant return home.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 13 Humāyīn nāma, yā, Mavāhib-i ilāhī / Book of Humāyīn, or, Divine gifts n.d.

Physical Description: 271 leaves : paper ; 243 × 122 mm. bound to 244 × 126 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Yazdi's history of the Muẓaffarid dynasty of Shīrāz, Isfahān, Kirmān, and Yazd, written for Shāh Shujā᾿ in 1356 CE. The text appears incomplete, as it begins mid-sentence on the first page and ends abruptly on the last. It begins with the ancestry of his majesty the "Asylum of the Caliphate" (i.e Mubāriz al-Dīn Muḥammad), and mentions the birth of his sons Sharaf al-Dīn Shāh Muẓaffar, "Asylum of the Sultanate" (i.e Shāh Shujā᾿), and Shāh Maḥmīd. It lays the ground for their further eminence, describing their meetings with the Ilkhānid Emperors Sultan Abī Sa“ īd and Arpa, and also mentions the affairs of the Injīīds in Fārs and the Chībānids.

Author: Mu᾿īn al-Dīn Yazdi, d. 1387
Language: Text in Persian
Origin: [Persia?]
Layout: Average of 21 lines of text per page.
Script: Nastẚ līq.
Binding: Black leather binding with blind stamping.
Additional description: Chapter headings in red. Some stains and discoloration.
Contents:
- ff. 1a-3b: Opening;
- ff. 3b-9a: Introduction;
- ff. 9a-271a: The text.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 14 Akhlāq al-Muhsinī / The morals of the beneficent 1802

Physical Description: 102 leaves : paper ; 248 × 140 mm. bound to 255 × 146 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Islamic philosophy and ethics. Kāshifī's moral treatise, dedicated to the Timurid Sultan Ḥusayn Bayqara circa 1494 CE.

Author: Kāshifī, Ḥusayn Vā ῾iẓ, d. 1504 or 5
Scribe: Άbd Allah ibn Άbd Allah ibn Άbd Allah
Language: Persian
Layout: 16 lines of text per page.
Script: Nastẚ līq.
Decoration: Illuminated title page.
Binding: Brown leather binding with gilt stamping on spine.
Additional description: Chapter headings and verse markers in red ink. Text and outer page margins have been colored.
Contents:
- ff. 1a-4a: Opening;
- ff. 4a-4b: Table of contents;
- ff. 4b-5a: Chapter one: worship;
- ff. 5a-5b: Chapter two: purifying;
- ff. 5b-6a: Chapter three: prayer;
- ff. 6a-7a: Chapter four: thanksgiving;
- ff. 7a-8a: Chapter five: patience;
- ff. 8a-8a: Chapter six: contentment;
- ff. 8a-8b: Chapter seven: reliance on God, and the ability to live without;
- ff. 8b-10b: Chapter eight: having shame;
- ff. 10b-10b: Chapter nine: chastity;
- ff. 10b-11b: Chapter ten: courtesy;
- ff. 11b-12b: Chapter eleven: eminence of resoluteness;
- ff. 12b-13a: Chapter twelve: purposefulness;
- ff. 13a-14a: Chapter thirteen: endeavoring and struggling;
- ff. 14a-15a: Chapter fourteen: steadfastness;
- ff. 15a-23a: Chapter fifteen: justice;
- ff. 23a-25a: Chapter sixteen: forgiving;
- ff. 25a-26b: Chapter seventeen: restraint;
- ff. 26b-27b: Chapter eighteen: affability and benignity;
- ff. 27b-29b: Chapter nineteen: mercy and clemency;
- ff. 29b-31b: Chapter twenty: good works and charity;
- ff. 31b-34b: Chapter twenty one: generosity and beneficence;
- ff. 34b-37a: Chapter twenty two: humility and respectfulness;
- ff. 37a-38b: Chapter twenty three: trustworthiness and religiosity;
- ff. 38b-41a: Chapter twenty four: loyalty to a pledge;
- ff. 41a-41b: Chapter twenty five: honesty;
- ff. 41b-42b: Chapter twenty six: bringing about the needs of others;
- ff. 42b-43b: Chapter twenty seven: deliberation and careful regard;
- ff. 43b-45b: Chapter twenty eight: consultation and planning;
- ff. 45b-46b: Chapter twenty nine: vigilance and foresight;
- ff. 46b-51a: Chapter thirty: bravery;
- ff. 51a-53b: Chapter thirty one: zeal for honor;
- ff. 53b-55b: Chapter thirty two: management;
- ff. 55b-59b: Chapter thirty three: being wakeful and informed;
- ff. 62a-63a: Chapter thirty five: concealing secrets;
- ff. 63a-65b: Chapter thirty six: taking advantage of opportunity;
- ff. 65b-72a: Chapter thirty seven: honoring the rights;
- ff. 72a-74b: Chapter thirty eight: conversing with those who are upright;
- ff. 74b-82b: Chapter thirty nine: repulsing rascals;
- ff. 82b-102a: Chapter forty: on training servants and retainers, and their manners.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 15 Tuḥfat al-aḥrār va … subḥat al-abrār / The gift of the free and ... the majesty of the upright [1450-1550?]

Physical Description: 168 leaves : paper, ill. ; 197 × 105 mm. bound to 210 × 108 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Belles-lettres. The manuscript contains two works. From ff. 1b-63a is Tuḥfat al-aḥrār, and from 64b-168a is Subḥa al-abrār. Both works are part of the "septet" of Jāmī, or Haft Awrang.

Author: Jāmī, 1414-1492
Language: Text in Persian
Origin: [Timuird Herat?]
Layout: Average of 15 lines of text per page; two columns.
Script: Nastẚ līq.
Decoration: Pages 1b-3a, and 64b-66b are illuminated.
Binding: Black leather binding with red leather inside covers.
Additional description: Text in black ink; lacks chapter headings.
Contents:
- ff. 1a-1b: Opening;
- ff. 1b-63a: Tuḥfat al-aḥrār;
- ff. 64b-168a: Subḥa al-abrā.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 16 Târih-i feth-i Belgrad ; Târih-i Bosna / The history of the conquest of Belgrade ; History of Bosnia 1741 March

Physical Description: 167 leaves : paper, ill. ; 204 × 154 mm. bound to 204 × 155 mm.

Scope and Content Note

The manuscript contains two historical works. The History of the conquest of Belgrade is an excerpt from Subhîʼs Tarih-I Sami ve Şakir ve Subhî (Istanbul, 1784) covering the reign of the Ottoman Sultan Mahmud (r. 1730-1754). The scribe begins with the events of the year 1736 C.E. (80a of the printed work) when the troubles with Afsharid Persia are brought to a close, and the Ottoman army heads west into the Balkans. To this excerpt, the compiler has added a selection by Ömer Bosnavi entitled Târih-I Bosna (History of Bosnia), known by its full title as Tarih-i Bosna der zaman-i Hekimzade Ali Paşa.

Author: Mehmet Subhî, d. 1769 and Ömer Bosnavi, 18th cent.
Language: Text in Ottoman Turkish
Origin: Ottoman Empire
Layout: Average of 23 lines of text per page.
Binding: Deteriorated brown leather binding with blind stamped leather cutout on cover; leather fore-edge flap.
Additional description: Text in black ink, punctuation marks (often misplaced) in red. Chapter headings and verse markers in red from ff. 72b-117b.
Contents:
- ff. 1b-117b: Târih-i Feth-i Belgrad;
- ff. 119b-167a: Târih-i Bosna.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 17 Ḥālnāmah / The book of ecstasy 1566?

Physical Description: 17 leaves : paper, ill. ; 218 × 143 mm. bound to 222 × 146 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Belles-lettres. Mystical story in verse, also known as Guy va chawgān, yā, Ḥālnāmah (The ball and polo stick, or, The book of ecstasy).

Author: ῾ārifī, d. ca. 1449
Language: Text in Persian
Layout: Average of 12 lines of text per page.
Script: Nastẚ līq.
Decoration: Illumination on title page; paper is painted in blue and gold floral motifs.
Binding: Red leather binding with three medallions blind stamped on cover.
Additional description: The leaves decorated in yellows, greens, and blues, with gold floral motifs. The text in black, chapter headings in gold.
Content:
- ff. 1b-5b: Opening;
- ff. 5b-11a: Narrative;
- ff. 11a-17a: Closing.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 18 / [Letter-writing] n.d.

Physical Description: 67 leaves : paper ; 180 × 127 mm. bound to 181 × 126 mm.

Scope and Content Note

This is a handbook of official correspondence, meant for secretaries, providing samples of letters to various government functionaries or potentates according to rank or the occasion. These include letters congratulating a person's appointment to the office of grand vizier (5a), a vizier's letter to the king (8b), or letters congratulating scholars being appointed to teach and to give legal rulings (16b).

Language: Text in Ottoman Turkish
Layout: Average of 15 lines of text per page.
Decoration: Illuminated title page.
Binding: Brown leather binding with gilt medallion stamped on covers; detached fore-edge flap. Decorative green, red, and white endpapers.
Additional description: Official correspondence manual. Text in black and red ink.
Content:
- ff. 1b-5a: Opening;
- ff. 5a-65b: Sample letters;
- ff. 65b-67b: Blank.

Box 2

Manuscript no. 19 Qurʼān / Koran n.d.

Physical Description: 1 leaf, 1 fragment : paper ; 123 × 80 mm., 21 × 78 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Fragment of Chapter 8 (Sīra al-Anfāl, or the Spoils of war) from the fourth word of verse 15 to the very end of verse 72. Small fragment from Chapter 3 (Sīra āl ᾿Imrān, or The family of Amram): recto has five words (the fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth) from the 195th verse; verso has seven words of the 198th verse.

Language: Text in Arabic
Layout: 15 lines of text.
Decoration: Chapter headings in gold.
Additional description: Text in black ink, vowels in red ink. Framed in gold border.

Box 5

Manuscript no. 19 Qurʼān / Koran [18--?]

Physical Description: 605 leaves : paper, ill. ; 257 × 162 mm. bound to 259 × 166 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Koran with interlinear Persian translation, as well as exegetical marginalia attributed to "Husayn Kāshifī", who may be the same 15th-16th century intellectual Husayn Vāʼiz Kāshifī (d. 1504-5) of the Timurid court in Herat.

Language: Text in Arabic and Persian
Origin: [Qajar Persia?]
Layout: Average of 12 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh (Arabic text), nastẚ līq (Persian text).
Decoration: Extensive, full-leaf illumination on leaves 1b, 2a, 2b, 105b, 106a, 201b, 202a, 292a, 293b, 374b, 375a, 448b, 449a, 518b, 519a, 604b, and 605a. Partial illumination throughout entire manuscript.
Binding: Red lacquer boards; red leather spine. Dense floral design on the outside covers, medallions on inside covers.
Additional description: Arabic text in black, interlinear Persian in red, and marginalia in black and red. The text is framed in a box with thin green, gold, red, white, and blue borders. Between this box and the edge of the paper, there is another gold border 13 × 16 mm. from the edge of the paper. Extensive marginalia in red and black ink.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 20 / [Calendar] [1775]

Physical Description: 8 leaves : paper ; 244 × 155 mm. bound to 253 × 163 mm.

Scope and Content Note

A calendar of the year 1189-90 AH (1775-6 AD), completed under the reign of the Ottoman Sultan Abdulhamid I (r. 1774-89), who is mentioned in the opening statements (1b). Each page covers a month in the Islamic calendar. For each month there is a table listing the weeks, "Arabic" and "Roman" dates of the week, the houses of the zodiac, and suitable activities. The author mentions a day in April 1775 as the first day of Spring (Nowrooz/Nevruz) and the day when the year will change; therefore the composition must have been completed shortly before that time. Gilt stamp on cover reads "Universal calendar of 1190 for Sultan Abdulhamid I."

Language: Ottoman Turkish
Origin: Ottoman Empire
Layout: Average of 12-15 lines of text per page.
Binding: Half leather binding with decorative blue paper; red, green and gray botanical print endpapers.
Additional description: Text in black, orange, green, gold, and red ink. Ink-stained, chipped and frayed.

Scrolls

Box 5

Manuscript no. 21 [Scroll] [18--?]

Physical Description: 1 roll (20 sheets) : paper, ill. ; ca. 680 cm. × 10 cm.

Scope and Content Note

8 rolls, mostly illustrated, glued together into a consecutive piece.

Decoration: Decorated with the following illustrations in order of appearance from top of the scroll to the bottom;

A) brown cross with green wreath on top, planted into green earth;
B) Jesus dressed in red and blue, surrounded by three winged faces;
C) section historiated with three figures in same positions--an angel, a bear or lion, and a donkey or goat, each with a red fish-tale and holding a book;
D) black cross;
E) red and gold cross;
F) Jesus dressed in red and blue with his hand on the head of a man dressed in green, kneeling before him;
G) gold cross on red and black platform set on pink paper;
H) red cross with two angels hovering at the foot, set on yellow paper.

Occasional stains and tear drops. Handwritten note dated 1952, possibly regarding the scroll, wrapped with the item.

Language: Text in Armenian

Box 5

Manuscript no. 22 [Scroll] [18--?]

Physical Description: 1 roll (4 sheets) : paper, ill. ; 117.8 cm. × 10.5 cm.

Scope and Content Note

Layout: Four small scrolls glued together.
Decoration: Painting at head of scroll of Jesus with a gold halo, dressed in red and blue. Watermark at head of scroll.
Language: Text in Armenian

Box 5

Manuscript no. 23 [Scroll] 1835

Physical Description: 1 roll : paper ; 106 cm. × 8.7 cm.

Scope and Content Note

Contains Koranic and exegetical matters. Introduction torn away, with remaining text beginning with the middle of the 255th verse ("Āya al-Kursīyy" or the "Verse of the throne") of the second sīra ("al-Baqara" or the "Cow"); ending at verse 257. This is followed by a phrase in red, "what is to follow after prayer," and then text in black ink, ending with an "invocation to Ali" prayer. Includes beginning of sīra 97 or "al-Qadr" ("Power"). The tail of the scroll contains closing statements, verses in Persian, and a date mark. Layout: Ruled lines of text enclosed in a gold and blue text box. Paper is frayed and torn at head.

Language: Text in Arabic and Persian

Box 5

Manuscript no. 24 [Scroll] 1842

Physical Description: 1 roll : paper ; 58.6 cm. × 12 cm.

Scope and Content Note

Layout: Ruled text in black ink, framed in painted orange borders. Torn at the top and bottom; frayed around the edges.
Language: Text in Armenian

Box 5

Manuscript no. 25 [Scroll] 1842

Physical Description: 1 roll : paper, ill. ; 84.6 cm. × 7.8 cm.

Scope and Content Note

Unruled text in brown ink, heading in red ink, framed in red borders. Green cross at head of scroll.

Language: Text in Armenian

Box 5

Manuscript no. 26 [Scrolls] [18--?]

Physical Description: 7 rolls : paper, ill. ; various sizes

Scope and Content Note

Layout: 7 separate scrolls, some illustrated.
Language: Text in Armenian

Box 5

Manuscript no. 27 [Scroll and purse] [18--?]

Physical Description: 1 roll, 1 pouch : paper, ill., cloth : scroll of unknown length, 173 × 183 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Layout: Black and red ink text in a red border. Cloth pouch of brightly colored fabric; small metal clasp. Scroll has fine and elaborate illustrations throughout. Scroll is fragile and light-sensitive. May not be handled without the express permission and supervision of the Manuscripts Librarian.
Language: Text in Armenian

Box 5

Manuscript no. 28 [Scroll] 1848

Physical Description: 1 roll (2 sheets) : paper, ill. ; 86 cm. × 10.5 cm.

Scope and Content Note

Layout: Scroll comprised of two pieces glued together. Decoration: Illustration of green and red cross at head of scroll. Text in black ink, with yellow borders. Watermark at head of scroll.
Language: Text in Armenian

Box 5

Manuscript no. 29 [Scroll] [18--?]

Physical Description: 1 roll (4 sheets) : paper, ill. ; ca. 10 × 125 cm.

Scope and Content Note

One scroll, divided into two fragments, comprised of two pieces glued together each.

Decoration: Illustration of Jesus, dressed in red and blue. Text in black, framed in yellow borders.
Language: Text in Armenian

Box 5

Manuscript no. 30 [Scroll] 1839

Physical Description: 1 roll (2 sheets): paper, ill. ; 118.4 cm. × 9.6 cm.

Scope and Content Note

Layout: Unruled text with section headings; ruled borders. Illustration of Jesus at head of scroll, dressed in blue and red with yellow halo. Text in black ink, with red or blue headings. Yellow and black borders. Undated notation, possibly regarding the scroll, wrapped around it.
Language: Text in Armenian

Box 5

Manuscript no. 31 [Scroll] [18--?]

Physical Description: 1 roll (2 sheets) : paper, ill. ; 133 cm. × 10.4 cm.

Scope and Content Note

Scroll begins with God's name at the top, followed by fifteen circular and one square text box, containing Arabic text and number charts. The texts are prayers and spells with repetitive phrases, some of which are from the Koran (for example, the text of the ninth circle begins with a few word of the Sīra al-Qalam "Chapter of the Pen").

Layout: Average of 10 lines of text within each circular frame; circles are approx. 8 cm. in diameter. Two pieces glued together to comprise one scroll.
Decoration: Painted circle borders enclose the text; green and pink floral motif painted in the margins. Red, black, green and blue ink. The scrolls appear to have been folded lengthwise before rolling; a tear has occurred along the top 16.5 cm. of the seam.
Language: Text in Arabic

Box 5

Manuscript no. 32 [Scroll] 1833

Physical Description: 1 roll (2 sheets) : paper ; 84.4 cm. × 10.2 cm.

Scope and Content Note

Layout: Unruled text on two fragments. Text in black, red, orange, green, and blue ink, framed in brown and yellow borders. At the head of the scroll, a piece has been torn from the margin to the inner edge of the border, measuring 14.7 × 1.9 cm.
Language: Text in Armenian

Book covers and artifacts

Box 4

Manuscript no. 33 [Leather bag] n.d.

Physical Description: 1 bag (accessory item) : leather ; 285 × 260 × 50 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Leather bag with braided tassels for securing the flap; leather braided shoulder-strap. The flap is embroidered with green and brown leather in geometric designs.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 34 [Book cover] n.d.

Physical Description: 1 lacquered book cover : paper-mâché ; 220 × 133 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Lacquered book cover with decorative floral ornamentation. Outside covers show a bouquet of various colors against a black background, framed in red and yellow floral borders; inside covers show red flowering plant framed in black and yellow floral borders. In black ink, "Part Eight; Ḥājī Muḥammad Ṭaqī; Ḥājī Bābā Tabrīzī " on outside cover. Fly leaves attached.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 35 [Book cover] n.d.

Physical Description: 1 lacquered book cover : paper-mâché ; 193 × 120 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Lacquered book cover (one board) with ornamental design. Recto shows three floral medallions over a yellow background with red borders; red framed in black border on verso. English writing in pencil on verso: "used as a cover for tax sheets [illegible] bound with a string."

Box 4

Manuscript no. 36 [Book cover] n.d.

Physical Description: 1 lacquered book cover : paper-mâché ; 154 × 89 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Lacquered book cover with decorative floral ornamentation. Outside cover shows a floral design on red background, framed in gold and black borders; inside cover shows white flowering plant on orange background with blue and white borders.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 37 [Book cover] n.d.

Physical Description: 1 leather book cover : paper-mâché : 172 × 94 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Red leather book cover (one board only) with painted cut-outs and gilt border.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 38 [Book cover] n.d.

Physical Description: 1 lacquered book cover : paper-mâché ; 108 × 65 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Black lacquered book cover with floral ornamentation and leather spine; flowers in a gilt border on recto, abstract floral design on verso.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 39 [Book cover] n.d.

Physical Description: 1 lacquered book cover : paper-mâché ; 127 × 78 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Lacquered book cover with floral ornamentation and leather spine. Outside cover shows floral motif on a black background bordered in black and gold; inside cover shows flowering plant on red background bordered in black and gold.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 40 [Book cover] n.d.

Physical Description: 1 lacquered book cover (one board only) : paper-mâché ; 217 × 141 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Black lacquered book cover (one board only) with decorative floral ornamentation. Recto shows a dense flower design over a burgundy background, with black, gold, and floral borders; verso shows flowering plant on black background bordered in black and gold.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 41 [Book cover] n.d.

Physical Description: 1 leather book cover : paper-mâché : 151 × 76 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Brown leather book cover with blue cloth inlays, gilt painting, and leather spine.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 42 [Book cover] n.d.

Physical Description: 1 lacquered book cover : paper-mâché ; 176 × 100 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Lacquered book cover (two separate boards) with decorative floral ornamentation. Outside cover shows floral motif on a green background, with black and gold borders; inside cover shows a white flowering plant on a red background, bordered in gold.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 43 [Book cover] n.d.

Physical Description: 1 lacquered book cover : paper-mâché ; 337 × 210 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Lacquered book covers. Recto has a flower and bird illustration set inside a yellow circle against a green background with thin gilded borders. Verso has two illustrations, one on the top half of the board, and another on the bottom. These show a number of women in what seems to be sequences from a story. The figures are drawn in black outline, wearing green and red dresses, and are set against a dark yellow and green background with a red border. Both boards are in poor condition. There is badly faded text in red ink over one of the story illustrations; the first word of the text appears to be "majlis," meaning assembly, and the second word is "Zulaykhā". The scene is probably from Jāmī's romance of Yīsuf and Zulaykhā (see ms. 1656/3), where Zulaykhā and other women were so awestruck by Yīsuf's beauty that they peel the skin of their hands instead of the fruits they are holding. The covers may have been designed to contain a version of Jāmī's versified romance (completed 1483 CE). Below these two words is the date 1043 AH (1633-4 CE).

Box 4

Manuscript no. 44 [Book cover] n.d.

Physical Description: 1 lacquered book cover : paper-mâché ; 365 × 227 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Lacquered book cover with decorative floral ornamentation and leather spine. Outside covers show a scene with three youths; inside covers show a white medallion design on a black background.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 45 [Wallet] n.d.

Physical Description: 1 wallet (accessory item) : leather and velvet ; 78 × 140 × 35 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Faded red velvet sewn over leather. Embroidered with floral and geometric ornamentation; green leather border. Gold clasp on flap.

Container List